Highlights
- Florence Pugh's passion for acting began at a young age, and despite facing disapproval from her school, she pursued her dreams and landed her first film role at just 17.
- Pugh never received formal training as an actress, which made her fear being exposed as inexperienced. However, she used every opportunity to learn from her co-stars and grow as an artist.
- In 2019, Pugh had a breakthrough year with three acclaimed performances, proving that her worries about being seen as a fake were unfounded. Despite some controversies, she continues to land major roles and captivate audiences with her authentic talent.
She is largely considered one of the best actresses of her time, but it wasn't always like that for Florence Pugh. Sure, she's talented, and even Cillian Murphy had some things to say about their intimate scene in Oppenheimer, but it took quite a few attempts at acting before Florence finally found her niche (in film rather than television) and settled into Hollywood.
It turns out that when she was an up-and-coming actress, Florence Pugh was always petrified that people would find out one detail about her that would change their minds about working with her.
Florence Pugh Grew Up Wanting To Act
Florence Pugh began acting in films in 2014, after years of performing on stage and earning critical acclaim for it. She came from a family of actors; of her four siblings, one was in Game of Thrones and her sister is a stage actor.
When she was a child, she played a "northern Mary" in a nativity play and got the audience howling, which sold her on the profession.
It seems she knew she would be an actress, and when she was in high school, Florence pushed back when her school wasn't supportive of her acting dreams. Not only that, but they actively disapproved of her taking an acting gig at that time, despite drama being "the only thing" Florence says she was ever good at.
It didn't deter her; Florence's first film, The Falling, came out when she was 17.
However, Florence never had formal training as an actress, which left her worried that she would eventually be 'found out' as a fake.
Florence Pugh Never Had Formal Acting Training
Though Florence now has many accolades for her acting under her belt, she struggled internally as a then-new actress. In an interview with BBC, which confirmed that Pugh never took any acting classes and simply went from high school to films, Pugh admitted that her first big movie (with big names) was "absolutely terrifying."
She knew how tough it could be, saying of her brother, "I remember watching him for years so, by the time I stepped up, I kind of knew the harsh reality of how things worked."
As Pugh noted in one interview, her sister, the stage actress, "is the only one who actually studied, so she’s the one with all the knowledge." Not having any education as an actress made Pugh fearful that people would decide she didn't know what she was doing, and she would get fired from the projects she landed.
In one scenario, all the actors showed up to a table read with notes all over their scripts, and Pugh's had none. She admitted "It’s very easy to suddenly feel like you’re not supposed to be there," but focused on "constantly learning" from everyone she worked with.
Yet in her first film, she explained that the director wouldn't let anyone watch themselves on film. Instead, they had to act without knowing what they looked like, something that Florence noted helped her to get outside of her head.
Working with Emma Thompson and being around "loud female wisdom all day" also helped Florence develop her education in the industry, she explained, even though every new role still gave her nerves.
As far as being scared to meet big-name celebrities, in that early project, it was Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins. Later, Florence would admit to being "so scared" to meet Meryl Streep (for Little Women), but by the time she appeared in Midsommar, Pugh was the critics' favorite.
In 2019, Florence Pugh Got Her Big Break
For Florence Pugh, 2019 was the year; she had three big roles in three separate projects, Pretty Women being one of them. Her performances earned rave reviews, and it seemed that all the worries Florence had about being seen as a 'fake' were a non-issue.
Sure, there were complaints from fans about Florence's relationship with Zach Braff, who was much older than her; some have suggested that her breakup was even a good thing for her career. There has also been criticism of Pugh's accent, and even accusations that she fakes it.
None of that matters at this point, though; Florence continues to land big roles, charm the pants off critics, and stay true to herself while molding herself into characters that continue to enchant audiences.
Being connected to Don't Worry Darling—with all the drama behind the scenes—also helped propel Florence Pugh into fans' consciousness. Amid the reported drama, Florence remained silent, even missing red-carpet appearances, which got the gossip mill going.
Ultimately, Florence was simply busy with other projects, showing she's capable of keeping things professional even as it all falls down around her.
But it might not be film that ultimately has her heart; in one interview, Pugh said she missed singing, and though she got to perform some songs on screen, she's planning to release an album at some point.
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